Anderson Silva enters as a favorite against Sonnen in a highly anticipated fight tonight

This match is one of the most anticipated matches in MMA history. Silva has been the most dominant UFC fighter to come through the ranks and enters with a 31-4 record and a perfect 14-0 UFC record. Chael Sonnen is 27-11-1, and 6-4 in the UFC.

Anderson “The Spider” Silva (-280) vs. Chael Sonnen (+220)

Silva is an amazing striker, and is in the opinion of many experts, the best striker ever to come through any MMA ranks. He’s so technically proficient, accurate, fast, strong, and quick, that it is near impossible to imagine countering a defense to his attacks. He is so great at varying his approach and keeping his opponents guessing, and fans can tell. Sometimes, he has an opponent stunned within seconds, and the only ones who were able to take it all in are those watching, because his moves are so orchestrated that opponents find themselves reeling from the first blow until the last. The best part about Silva is that he can launch these powerful attacks without compromising his defense. He’s almost never susceptible to taking big blows. He’s a great BJJ fighter and has long legs that allow him to get the “spider guard,” a body triangle from top to bottom. Once he does that, it’s over in short time, as he is able to neutralize his opponent with elbows to the head. He’s awesome standing and awesome on the ground; pick your poison.

Does Silva have any weaknesses? Yes. He’s not the greatest wrestler, and once he is taken to the ground, he has trouble.

But Sonnen fights the same way every fight. He fights very aggressively and doesn’t hold back once he starts an attack. In recent fights, he has guarded more than not, so he may be adapting his fight technique, but expect him to be very aggressive against Silva tonight. He almost always lands more significant strikes than his opponents, but that may not be the case against Silva, which should make this more interesting. He’s going to want to take this to the ground to be sure, because Silva’s wrestling defenses are just not good enough to stop him if he can get another assault going on the ground.

Sonnen’s big problem will be evading Silva’s submissions. Sonnen has lost eight times by submission and seven of those were by either triangle choke or armbar. Silva will have 25 minutes to submit him, and I have to figure that in that 25 minutes, it will happen. Silva wins this by submission.